Even experienced Sudoku players make mistakes. Learning to recognize and avoid common errors will significantly improve your solving skills.
1. Rushing Without Checking
Always verify your placements before moving on. One wrong number can ruin the entire puzzle.
2. Ignoring Pencil Marks
Keep accurate pencil marks to track possible candidates. Incomplete or incorrect marks lead to errors.
3. Forgetting the Rules
Remember that each row, column, and box must contain all numbers 1-9 exactly once.
4. Not Using Elimination
Systematically eliminate impossible candidates from cells to find the correct numbers.
5. Guessing Instead of Logic
Sudoku is a logic puzzle. If you're guessing, you're missing a logical step.